Library Services receive 19 prizes at Sustainability Awards 2019

Library Services collected a record array of awards at the Sustainability Awards ceremony 2019, which was held on Thursday 18th July. 19 Library teams participated in the Green Impact scheme this year, and both Richard Jackson (Sustainability Director) and Fiona Ryland (Chief Operating Officer) commended the department for such a strong demonstration of commitment to tackling sustainability issues.

During the ceremony, Professor Geraint Rees (Dean, Faculty of Life Sciences and SMT Sustainability Champion) and Fiona Ryland presented the awards to colleagues from all parts of UCL for sustainability achievements.

The full list of awards to Library Services sites, below, is testament to the outstanding work of Green Champions and colleagues throughout the department who are taking the initiative to reduce waste and energy consumption and to promote a sustainable environment at work. I am grateful to the Library Sustainability Committee, who have overseen this work, and particularly to Sarah Lawson and Noel Caliste who helped to coordinate the substantial collective submission from Library Services to the Green Impact assessors. Many of our sites were audited by the Green Impact team, and as Chair of the Sustainability Committee I have had the privilege of visiting sites myself to witness the huge amount of work which underpins these awards. I visited LASS Library last month, where in the past year the team organised events to raise awareness of sustainability, manage a flourishing collection of plants and even installed a bug hotel in the outdoor (naturally!) courtyard at Chandler House. I know that there are many other great initiatives in different sites and teams, and look forward to visiting the Bartlett Library in the near future.

Eastman Library	Bronze
Main Library	Bronze
Science Library	Bronze
Central Library Services (department)	Bronze
Student Centre	Bronze
Queen Square Library	Bronze
IoE Library	Silver
Bartlett Library	Silver
ICH Library (GOSICH)	Silver
IoO Library	Silver
Royal Free Library	Silver
Senate House Library	Silver
IoOrthop Library	Silver
Ear Library	Gold
Cruciform Library	Gold
Institute of Archaeology (IOA) Library	Gold
SoP Library	Gold
LASS Library	Gold
Wickford Stores	Gold

 

 

Congratulations to all the staff who were involved in Green Impact 2019. Each of these awards requires significant work and dedication to obtain the necessary credits. I would like to congratulate all the Green Champions and especially commend our 6 teams who achieved “Gold” this year: Wickford, LASS, SoP, IoA, Cruciform and Ear.

This is important work, which demonstrates some of our values (“empowering our staff and students” and being “eco-friendly”). Sustainability, and specifically our performance in Green Impact, is a key part of delivering the Sustainable Estate KPA in the Library Strategy.

To find out more about the work we are doing, including a Sustainability Reference Guide for the whole department, we have a Sustainability page on LibNet. Do get in touch if you would like to get involved!